The disclosure relates to an axial piston machine having bent axis construction.
Known axial piston machines of this type have a drive mechanism which, as essential components, comprises a rotatably supported drive shaft with an integrally formed drive flange, a cylinder barrel with longitudinally displaceable pistons guided in axially extending cylinder bores, and a control element. After the formation of a neck, the pistons, which are guided in a longitudinally displaceable manner in the cylinder bores, each have at the free end a spherical piston head, which is received in a manner which allows rotary motion in a spherical cup formed in the drive flange. A retraction disk, which fits behind the piston heads and thus prevents them from sliding out of the spherical cups, is provided for all the piston heads. However, the production and installation of the retraction disk is an involved process. During production, the retraction hole walls must be made in such a way that friction and wear are kept low during functional operation. To allow releasable fastening of the retraction disk, additional bores are required in the disk to accept screws. Additional threaded holes are required in the drive disk to accept the fastening screws.
One known way of countering this is to replace the retraction plate by individual bearing metal rings, which hold the spherical piston heads in a manner which allows rotation. DT 20 61 906 or DT 24 02 066 A1 each show such a solution. Here, the spherical cup is provided with a widened portion into which a bearing metal ring is pressed.
It is the underlying object of the disclosure to refine an axial piston machine having bent axis construction in such a way that pressure relief of the spherical head is ensured in all cases.